The Steep Path Ahead [Familiar of Zero AU]

[shadenight123]

Chapter Ninety

Louise had been very understanding in the end. Yes, she had blown the room away. Yes, she had blown the chairs, and the walls, and most of the ceiling and the floor, but her explosions did not form deadly shrapnel unless she wanted to, and they didn't hurt unless she wanted that too. So, for the most part, Louise's punishment had amounted to pretty much destroying the bed and the furniture around the room.

"She's like Karin, only Karin does that with hurricanes," Daphne remarked from Saito's left side.

"Oh, do you remember that time we played a prank on her and Pierre had to run from one side of the palace to the other to recover her lost lingerie, without her finding out?" Amethyst said with a giggle from Saito's right side.

"That was such a fun thing, we should try that again!" Daphne smiled as she nodded, even as a swordwand's tip was pointed an inch away from her face.

"L-Look here!" Louise snapped angrily. "I don't know who you think you are, but sleeping in the same bed as my fiance-that demands punishment! And how could not hear them slip in!? Saito, I've got words for you too!"

"Oh, I see," Daphne smiled with a devilish grin. "Perhaps she wanted to slip in the bed too~"

Louise's face turned an embarrassing shade of scarlet. "That's-So what? We sleep together all the time! I'm not seeing a problem with that!" she shook her head sharply. "Anyway! Who the hell are you!"

"That's simple," Amethyst said. "I'm Amethyst-"

"And I'm Daphne," Daphne added, before cheekily smiling together with her sister.

"And we're vampires under the service of your father, the Duke," they both said at the same time cheerfully.

"Ah, of course," Louise nodded. "My father had to-wait. Did you say vampires?"

Saito blinked. "But it's morning and you aren't burning," he pointed out quite helpfully.

"Silly boy, that's just folklore," Daphne giggled with a hand to cover her mouth. She then brought it down and smiled fully, showing her fangs. "See these? Fangs. Fangs mean vampires. Blood-sucking creatures of the night," she brought both hands up in a claw-like form. "Are you scared? You should be! We can wipe out whole villages!"

"Not that we do," Amethyst pointed out. "We're good vampires. Really good-you should ask the servants. Well, if they remember us and not their 'pleasant dreams' that is-"

"Amethyst! That's uncouth from a lady like yourself!" Daphne said with a mock-shocked tone.

Louise stared, and then shook her head, a hand through her hair. "Saito, look-you're the one who can withstand world-shaking revelations and not bat an eyelid, so you talk to them, while I'll just go-" she blinked. "Wait a minute! You two-this isn't the first time we meet, do we!? Saito! He dreamed about-"

"Yep," the duo giggled together. "And you should know that last night was pretty much a rematch," this time, only Amethyst spoke. "You shouldn't worry too much. We were just so tired after the fight we collapsed after healing him. See, we had to see if it was just a fluke or not," the girl shook her head, sighing and pushing her hair behind her shoulder.

"The fight?" Louise asked, "What fight?"

"I put everyone in the palace to sleep, so you didn't hear it," Daphne admitted easily. "Well, except Pierre and Karin, that is. Pierre wanted to know just how strong he was, and if he couldn't get serious with him, then a monster of the night attacking him would force him to do something! Amethyst battered him, but I was nearby ready to heal him if something really bad happened. But it didn't, though he fought better when he was unconscious than when he was awake. Perhaps he can't get serious if it's a cute girl fighting him?" Daphne tapped her chin, her eyes staring at the ceiling's holes in thought.

"So if he's unconscious, he fights better," Amethyst nodded. "He even cut my arm off! And stabbed me, talk about being harsh with a lady," she pouted. "But his blood is delicious, so I can forgive him for being rough."

"You!" Louise spluttered. "Saito, are you feeling all right?" she asked next, worriedly rushing over to check him. "I swear if you turned him into some sort of vile puppet-I'll never forgive you!"

"Oh no, course not," Daphne shook her head. "We would have needed to drink all of his blood, and then he would have been a puppet to our will," the vampire smiled lazily, "We are very kind masters however, fufufu~"

"I'll pass," Saito replied with a dry chuckle as Louise fretted over him to check for any lingering scars or wounds. "So it was all a test?"

"More of a way to understand how your power works," Amethyst admitted. "Still, if anyone ever attempts at Louise's life, perhaps the best solution would be to knock yourself out if they're a pretty girl."

Daphne nodded. "Or learn how to safely disarm an opponent, and give it your all in doing that. I think Pierre's hiring someone to teach you, so you should be set in the future. Oh, right," Daphne smiled softly as she stood up, "Do keep our existence a secret, please." Amethyst followed her sister's motions, and the two slipped out of the room quietly without making a single noise.

Louise grumbled as her arms clutched on firmly to Saito's head, tension leaving her frame as she groaned. "My parents deal with vampires. My husband-to-be is kind to everyone who gives him a sad look. Am I the only one in this family who's normal?" she blinked once, and then sighed, "Oh, right, silly me. I'm a Void user. A holy descendant of Brimir tasked by the Gods to reclaim the holy lands. Yes, of course, silly me thinking there was anyone normal around me when I'm the least normal of them all."

She clenched her hands, "Hey, Saito? Do you mind if I keep hugging you like this for a bit longer? I'm just...scared of what is to come."

"Going to a new school is kind of scary," Saito admitted.

"Dork," Louise pouted. She wasn't meaning that, and Saito knew it.

Yet, as a once-student of a school in Japan, he could relate. He was also secretly happy he wouldn't have to follow lessons, or do homework.

"You know you'll be following classes with me, right?" Louise said dryly, "And help me with my homework-"

Saito groaned loudly, just as Louise giggled, with the full knowledge that the boy would do just that because she asked.

Saito would never say 'no' to her.

Well, technically he never said 'no' to a cute girl, but she'd break him out of that habit.

Or she'd just vaporize all the cute girls around him except for her.

That would work just as well, wouldn't it?

 

[shadenight123]

Chapter Ninety-One

Saito looked warmly at Louise's nervous and twitching frame. "I swear," Louise muttered, "If they say anything about my explosive abilities, I'll blast them to kingdom come."

"I'm sure they won't," Saito replied with a nod. "We faced gryphons, what's a classroom of teenagers going to do to us?"

"You don't know how nasty noble kids can be," Louise said hotly, "Just because I'm a Duchess' daughter and no longer an orphan doesn't change their nature, but I'd rather not have to find out how far I can blast them if I can avoid it."

As it turned out, not much. Being the long thought dead daughter of the Duchess de la Valliere meant that everyone was curious, from the girls to the boys. Considering how she was amidst the first years, she was surrounded by girls sixteen to seventeen years old, so younger than her. No one politely pointed that out, and they shared a classroom with Tiffania, who was quite thankful at having someone to speak with.

Somehow, her two noticeable qualities had made her unapproachable by the other students.

This stopped when Louise, with the utmost dignity she could muster, sat down right next to her and smiled.

Saito wasn't there to 'learn magic', but he still ended up sitting next to Louise. Thus 'guarded on all sides', Louise didn't need to suffer through childish starry-eyed looks, or too-curious-for-their-own-good nobles.

He was also allowed to keep his daggers at his belt and a sword on his back. Daggers, since he had sworn he'd never go without weapons on his self as a precaution, and thus had a neat collection of at least six blades across his body, and a longsword because one never knew when it might come in handy. He had also argued on keeping his bow, but had been shot down.

"I could set up a kitchen," Saito mused offhandedly as he scribbled off something in that strange tongue he had learned and mastered over the course of gruesome weeks. "With the amount of steel on my body right now," he added.

"I have to wear a skirt," Louise said hotly, "It's...It's breezy." She shuddered. "Why does it have to be so breezy? Why does it have to be a skirt?"

Tiffania simply fidgeted with her fingers by Louise's side, looking down at her own homework neatly arranged and polished. They were in the library, the quite furnished library of the school, and they were currently working on the latest assignment of the 'Alchemy' Dot-Level spell. "I like skirts," Saito said with a giggle that dripped of perversion. "With knee socks, there's this thing called 'The Absolute Territory' that-"

"I had no doubt you'd like the school's uniform, you pervert," Louise rolled her eyes, pouting as she pushed a lock of her hair behind her ears, looking down at the parchment she had half-written.

"I like you wearing the school uniform, Louise, there is a difference," Saito replied smoothly, and Louise blushed and looked away, coughing in her closed fist.

"That has to be the maid's influence," Louise grumbled under her breath. Siesta was serving at the academy after all, when she wasn't taking care of Charlotte -who had yet to return for the start of the new year- and thus during her free time she'd give novels of a certain genre to Saito to read. And he would.

They were, for the most part, romance novels. They were trashy, filthy, absolutely immoral romance novels, of which Louise most assuredly did not have a few stashed beneath her mattress for her own reading pleasure at night, because no, she would never admit the thought of being a lonely woman torn between two men to be-no, no, purity of mind, Louise! Be pure of mind and spirit and body and soul!

Unfortunately, not everything was sunshine and daisies, and one sore point was a tan-skinned and well-endowed girl their senior. She also had the disgrace of being a Zerbst.

"Hey~ Tiny-Louise, how are you doing?" Kirche Von Zerbst would smirk, draw near, and show her cleavage to Saito's most uninterested face -his eyes declared independence during that time, doing their best to catch quick glimpses. "Is there something you don't understand? As a Zerbst, I should educate a Valliere about the proper forks to use for lunch and dinner-"

"I can stab stuff with a knife," Louise would answer very politely. "I'm not going to stab you because then those two balloons would pop, and there would be blood everywhere," she would then nod wisely and, sometimes, the Zerbst would leave it at that.

Other times, she'd persist.

Saito had other troubles. Apparently, being a Baron, a fiance of Louise and being allowed to carry a sword on his back made for all sorts of funny encounters during his time around the courtyards. Mostly people who thought they could challenge him to 'Duels' since they weren't allowed to challenge other school students, but since he wasn't, he was free-for-all.

This routinely turned into practice.

And in bruises for the poor students who really should have picked their battles better. The story that spread was that if one wanted to show his worth, they had to force the Noble Hiraga to use his wand, otherwise he'd defeat young upstarts with his sword.

It wasn't a bad proposition, since nobody here was as bad as the sort of enemy he had faced, and they were all 'playing around' rather than aiming for a kill. It was practice, and experience.

Perhaps he was even leveling up, and if so, he had to put all of his points in Endurance. He chuckled at the thought.

Unfortunately, the nights were the most problematic times for both Louise and Saito.

"So our diet mainly consists of blood, but if blood isn't available, we can sustain ourselves on other liquids," Daphne said calmly, as if she was merely mentioning what she had for breakfast. Louise's entire body was crimson from sheer shame.

"I cannot properly guard you during the night if you're going to let me starve, and since I cannot hunt or I'd leave you alone, this only means you have to either bring someone here for me to feed on, or feed me yourself."

Saito wasn't, thankfully, in the same room as the two girls, or he'd have cheerfully hooted for the 'alternative' feeding method. He had other problems.

Namely, he was busy eating the dirt of the courtyard as a wooden sword battered his body, crushed his ego, and taught him manners.

"Is that what you call a deflection?" the gruff and menacing looking woman that was his sword, bow and firearm instructor was one among the best of the Firearms division of the Tristain army. Her name was Agnes, and even though she was a commoner, she had earned the title of 'Chevalier de Milan' for having aided during the events of the battle of Milan, where a small skirmish between Germanian mercenaries had nearly set the whole town aflame.

"I've seen straw mannequins parry lances with more grace! You don't meet the enemy's sword head on, you let it glide down! Come on!" Agnes snapped curtly, "I'll whip you in shape or I'll make you love the taste of dirt! Pick your sword up and get your stance back in shape now."

Honestly, it wasn't bad as a new beginning of sorts.

Unfortunately, the road was merely halfway traveled. There was still a long, long way to go.

And as it happens with all steep paths ahead, they always increase their steepness right before the summit.

 

[shadenight123]

Chapter Ninety-Two

Saito sighed as he slumped down next to Louise in the room they shared. The girl was always exhausted, having already fallen peacefully asleep. He was pretty sure that somewhere in the room, or the hallway nearby, Daphne was keeping a careful watch over them. Still, since he couldn't sense her, it made it all the more creepy.

She could literally be straddling him and he wouldn't be able to sense her. How did people even fight such scary creatures? How much courage did they need to hunt them down? And were actual elves even stronger? The only 'Elves' he had met had been that murderous one and Tiffania, and that didn't help to give him an idea of their strength.

The books in the library all spoke of monsters, man-eating, baby-crushing, soul-devouring monsters who could bend nature to their whims, and had it not been for the glory of Brimir's magic, they would have destroyed mankind -at least, believing some holy texts that had come later.

He couldn't really believe them fully, not with Tiffania's own revelation of her mother's kindness -and if her mother had been in love with a human, then didn't it mean they were for the most part false?

He felt a sudden chill as his cheek seemed to dribble with sweat. Was it his? Was it not-

Louise, still asleep, turned sharply and drove a fist into the air right above Saito's head. For a split second, Saito held the firm belief that the punch had been intended for him, but as Louise's arm suddenly relaxed and fell down to clutch his chest, he simply decided that couldn't have been the case.

The next morning, Daphne held a pout on her mouth as she strolled under the bed sheets, leaving the honor of guarding Louise back to Saito and muttering something about 'selfish children who won't share their beefcake'.

Still, this sort of peaceful lull couldn't last. It was thus with white wings from a dragon that it was shattered abruptly, carrying upon its back a boy with blond hair and moon-eyes, as they were called the eyes of two different colors. He landed in the courtyard before breakfast, and then strolled leisurely up to Saito and Louise with a smile on his face that promised he had nothing but the best of possible intentions.

On his back, a large knapsack seemed to rest, reinforced and quite precious if the young man had refused to let go of it even during flight.

"Good morning," the boy spoke with a crisp voice. "I am a messenger from his Holiness, the Pope Saint Aegis the Thirty-Second, the Shield of the Founder, and I have come to deliver a message, and await a reply," he smiled, and in his smile were the sparkles of a pretty boy that instantaneously put Saito up on his guard, and yet made Louise blink and blush lightly.

For once, Saito found himself on the other end of the barricade, and he now understood just how annoying it was. Louise seemed quite surprised when a letter was handed over to her, but another still remained in the messenger's hands. "Lady Valliére, would you be so gracious as to show me where I may find Miss Tiffania?" the messenger said once more with a smile.

"Ahem," Saito coughed. "I haven't heard your name yet, but you seem to know us very well."

The Romalian messenger smiled kindly towards Saito, and bowed with a hand to his chest. "Oh, forgive my rudeness. I am Julio, Julio Chesare, a knight of the Pope's holy guard, and a priest. I am also his Holiness' must trusted messenger," he added as he stood back up. "You must be Lord Saito? Baron of La Baume?"

"Yeah, and Louise's fiancé," Saito said with a scoff, putting his chest up in pride, only for Louise to smirk and chuckle sharply by his side, making him deflate. "How do you know that, however?"

"We have more in common than you might think," Julio said plainly, his right hand calmly coming up to reveal the glittering runes of the familiar branding. "From one summoned by God to another, I am sure you will have no need to mistrust me so much?" he asked next, his voice calm like a pond of still water.

Saito furrowed his brows, but nodded. It wasn't like he hadn't expected this to happen. He had hoped it would come only after the recovery of the Zero fighter and the subsequent 'sent off', but Marteau was being positively -or fashionably- late.

He was starting to think something bad had happened to him, but he was honestly still hoping he'd make his way back to the academy all in one piece. It wasn't like they could search for him. They didn't have cellphones, and to find someone in the middle of a whole nation, it would require quite the effort.

So all that Saito could do was hope. He would have gone to check Siesta's village sooner, rather than later, but Louise could not miss classes, there were still weeks left before the moons joined together, and Professor Colbert -the one in charge of the whole 'produce more gasoline' project apparently was at most just starting on the gasoline drops he had recovered from the bottom of the Zero's tank.

The man had personally gone to check on it, which meant that yes, Siesta had spoken with the professor and yes, Marteau had made himself known to the academy staff during his brief passage through. It was perhaps only paranoia that fueled Saito's nervousness.

That, and the bishonen-looking priest who seemed to be smiling at anything Louise said.

"I am positive the greatness of the Gandalfr will be of great aid during the crusade," Julio spoke in a quiet voice. "With all four Void Users reunited, a crusade will most definitely terminate with our victory over the Elves."

Louise looked sideways. "Charlotte said she wouldn't pull Tiffania into this-"

"His Holiness was not told by Her Grace D'Orleans," Julio replied smoothly. "I understand there is some enmity between you, but in front of our common foe, the Elves, there is no other enemy that we must desire to see crushed in our hearts."

"Enmity? No, it's not something as trifle as enmity," Louise drawled back with a sour look, "But it doesn't matter. I don't know how you plan on convincing Tiffania to participate in a crusade. If you know of her, then-do you also know of her parentage?"

"Yes," Julio answered primly. "That is meaningless, for the Pope is most gracious and understanding. He will write her a personal writ that will grant her safety from persecutions. As long as she is willing to conjure forth her familiar, the last remaining familiar of the Void yet to be called forth-"

"The last one?" Louise murmured, "But-"

"Her Grace, Charlotte D'Orleans, already saw fit to bind a familiar to the role of the Mind of God. Only the Heart of God remains to be summoned, or bound, and once such a feat happens-the Four of Four will be reunited as is just and a crusade will be called to reclaim the Holy Lands," Julio spoke plainly. "This is merely reciting the Holy Founder's book passages that every priest knows by heart, and only a tiny part of the truth," his eyes closed only slightly. "The truth is far scarier."

Charlotte's lithe frame appeared in a hurry across the hallway on the opposite side of them, perplexing Louise, and Saito too. Of course, the girl should have returned to school to 'finish' her education, but she hadn't shown herself at all. She was like a ghost, and not even Sylphid had been visible among the familiars in the courtyard. For all intents and purpose, there was no way to know if she had actually returned or not -she didn't show herself in classrooms, and wasn't present during the lunches or the dinner.

Yet there she was, breathing hard as her body was shaking lividly.

"Not her," she said.

"His Holiness is willing to let her stay safe. Her familiar is, on the other hand, needed," Julio replied.

Charlotte's gaze averted itself from him, and her hands clenched her staff tightly, to the point where her already pale knuckles turned even whiter. "I promised-"

"I have brought everything that is needed," Julio said, pulling the knapsack from his back and letting it jingle slowly. "With this, there will be no more ignoring the truth for everyone else involved. It is very important that they find out, and understand that it is the only way. Please, your grace, do not stop me. I have a letter to deliver, and one should never shoot the messenger for the message."

"The Cardinal-"

"As a faithful follower of his Holiness, of course the Cardinal delivered promptly everything that was asked of him to deliver," Julio nodded once, swiftly and without doubt even as he took a step forward, soon followed by another. "I presume I know the road from here to reach Miss Tiffania's room."

"But you've never been here before," Saito muttered, his eyes darting from the boy to Charlotte and viceversa.

"No, I have not," Julio said with a kind nod. "But the creatures that belong to Brimir's realm have, and through them, all is to me revealed," from a nearby window, a lonely seagull came in flapping its wings, and cawed nicely as it landed on the hallway's stone floor. "Be they as small as a bird or as powerful as a Hydra," the man kept walking, soon coming right by Charlotte's side. "And even as strong as a Rhyme Dragon," with a hum, he moved right past the blue-haired girl, who said nothing more, but slumped her shoulders down as she allowed him to pass.

"Wait a minute!" Louise snapped as she rushed ahead, "What's going on here?"

"Let him go," Charlotte whispered hoarsely, a wall of ice sprouting from the tip of her staff to block the path forward for them both. "Just...just let him go."

Louise's eyes moved from the wall of ice to the blue haired young girl, and as she brought her wand out, she pointed it at the ice wall. "You think this can stop me? Saito-"

"You know what's going to happen?" Saito asked, carefully taking a few steps forward with both of his hands raised. "Charlotte-look, I think you don't want to do this-"

"No choice," Charlotte answered firmly, "I might be the Queen of Gallia, but even I can be forced to do things just like any others," she clutched her staff in front of her. "He won't kill her. He'll just force her to summon a familiar, or to bind one. It won't hurt her. The crusades will begin, the people will have their Holy Lands-"

"If that's the case..." Saito whispered, "Then why are you crying?"

"Because even if I'm known as the Snowstorm, this doesn't make my heart a piece of ice," Charlotte murmured, "So, I am warning you. If you step forward, then I'll stop you. I'm used to fighting alone, to fighting for the wrong reason and the wrong people, but again, if you take one more step forward then I'll have to stop you with everything you've got, and-"

"It's my lucky day then," Louise said with a cheerful smile, quite out of place on her. "Because you see, I don't need to take one step forward."

Quietly shining behind Louise's back, hidden from view by her own body, a single orb of white light suddenly exploded and covered the whole hallway in brilliant light.

Charlotte's body slumped on the floor with her back against the wall of ice, which quickly began to melt away.

"Let's hurry up," Louise grumbled. "Envoy of the Pope or not, I don't care. To make a callous bitch like her cry, then whatever he's planned must truly be horrible."

Saito didn't remark on how much Louise's voice seemed to betray her being 'pissed off'.

He simply nodded, and grabbed his longsword.

This wasn't going to end well.

He just had the feeling something bad was about to happen.

 

[shadenight123]

Chapter Ninety-Three

Saito's feet carried him like the wind itself through the hallways all the way to Tiffania's room, where a pained scream was all that it took for him to rip the door asunder with a powerful kick, only to come face to face with a crying Tiffania clutching on to a pile of...to a pile of red clothes, barely stitched together with what appeared to be rough hemp, or perhaps wool.

It was only as he recovered his breath and stared at Julio's slightly saddened face that he understood that the clothes, the child-sized clothes, weren't red because of a dye.

A cracked spyglass with the lenses shattered and its coppery form dented stood amidst the pile, a lonely Chef hat covered in splotches of blood by its side.

"That-" Saito's mouth dried up suddenly.

Louise herself stilled once in the room, her eyes roaming from the crying form of Tiffania to that of the Romalian priest.

"Their remains were found a short distance away from the palace of La Rochelle. It is perhaps because he held on to an object of the Void at the time that the Elves managed to pursue him," the Romalian priest exhaled softly. "Thankfully, my presence nearby prevented them from stealing the Founder's Music Box, which I returned to her Grace, Charlotte Helene D'Orleans. She had no wish to let this gory news breach out, and was willing to let it be. I agreed on behalf that the familiar of the Heart of God would still be summoned," he looked from Saito to the tear-stricken Tiffania, "but recent messages told his Holiness that the Void User of the Albion line did not seem keen on doing so, and thus-"

"The academy staff saw Marteau come by and ask after the Zero Fighter," Saito said sharply. "He was alive, and well, and-"

"Her Grace Charlotte sent her knights to act as if they were the Chef, in order to complete the recovery and the repairs of the Zero Fighter. She had no desire for the flames of vengeance to stroke the heart of one of her friends, and also wished to make amends with you both," Julio smiled sadly, "It is a sad day that one as innocent as this fair maiden has to face reality in its blunt cruelty, but any who are touched by the Void are eventually forced to come to terms with the consequences of it."

"No," Tiffania whispered, "Pierre-Marie-they would never have-it's not possible," she shook her head firmly. "They were supposed to take carriages. I bid them farewell the morning before-they were all so happy-"

"The cruelty of Elves knows no limit," Julio Chesare spoke crisply. "If they cannot have the Void User they set their eyes upon, they will target everyone dear near them, thus driving them in a state of despair and apathy from which the casting of spells is severely limited. There is a reason the Elves are thus so feared," he narrowed his eyes. "And it is for that reason that we must have a crusade, for their cruelty has gone too far. Do not let this pain stop you, fair maiden, from doing what the Founder wishes of you. Take strength in this, and summon forth your familiar."

"Cut that out!" Louise snapped airily, stepping closer to the priest with a hand clenching firmly the handle of her swordwand. "You can't just expect someone to do as you want after giving them a news like this! What kind of cold-hearted monster are you!? Even that ice queen wasn't this ruthless!"

Julio did not smile, his lips setting in a slightly offended curl. "Why not? What more needs to happen before you stand ready? Do you think the dalliance of students can apply to the likes of you? To the chosen of the Gods, to the Founders' heirs? Do you truly think that a life of peace may be yours to claim? Until the Holy Lands have been claimed, what can you expect if not more carnage? More senseless, meaningless deaths?"

"But why would they do this?" Saito's voice cut through the priest's words. "Why kill innocents like this? Elves aren't monsters, if there are both good and bad Elves, then-"

"Because we are fighting not a war desired by the Gods, although that is what the common folk believes," Julio said plainly, staring into the eyes of Saito. "We are fighting a war of survival. Both of us, both the humans and the Elves, we are staking our existence on the line. We cannot coexist, not both of us-never."

"But why," Saito snapped, "You seem to know, so why not just say it?"

Julio smiled bitterly, and then sighed. "Perhaps because this is not the right place to speak of it," he said. "Perhaps there will never be a right place to discuss this. Very well," he nodded, and moved slowly towards the window, which he opened to let the wind in. "Humanity is fated to die if it does not leave this land," he said crisply, "The Elves, in their cruelty, cursed the land beneath our feet to fill with Windstones -the same ones that hold Albion afloat- and the time of them shattering through the crust and emerging is closing in. Soon, the very land beneath our feet will break away and float away in the skies, impossible to reclaim. Before that happens, we need to move to the Holy Lands, who are free from this curse."

"That's bull-" Louise was, however, interrupted by Saito.

"Let's say that's true," Saito said, both hands raised in a placating gesture towards Louise, who seemed quite keen into driving her swordwand up the priest's spine and make holy spit-roast. "Let's say that's true, and if it is, then I can understand -not share, but understand- why you did this horrible thing. Why can't you speak with the Elves about this?"

"Because the only way that allows for a massive amount of people to be transported would be through the 'Gate' spell, but that would require all four Users of the Void to be together in order to make it big enough," Julio took a small breath, "And to have it reach far enough, but there is a problem. The Founder created a machine. This machine, this 'Gate of Demons', as the Elves call it...it powers up the more Void Users become powerful. This machine was designed to suck away the root of the Windstone Crisis' problem. This machine...would kill spirits, leaving the Elves powerless and unable to use their Spirit Magic. It would render most magical stones inert, but would save the people of Halkeginia."

"So I can guess why the Elves don't want to let Void Users live, but then-why not destroy the machine?" Saito hazarded. "That could be tried, couldn't it?"

"It was attempted, recently too," Julio sighed. "There was-there was an expedition, led by very devout, very courageous men and women into the Sahara. Only one woman returned alive from it, maddened and covered in blood. She screamed few words, a terrible fever wracking her. Those words were 'They hunger beyond the wall'."

"Who does?" Saito asked.

"The machine, this machine that the Elves call 'The Demon Gate' is perhaps not a tool of murder, but merely a prison for spirits. Spirits of ages long forgotten must have been trapped in there, and without a way to sustain themselves of the world's energy-they turned mad."

"So destroying this Void-Machine would be a bad idea," Saito acquiesced. "Not destroying it, it activates, and it kills their spirits-"

"Yes," Julio nodded. "Thus they raid upon the Founder's lands searching for the descendants of the Founder, and until now, they always found them first. Thankfully, after the expedition something happened, and they no longer could." Julio took a small breath of relief. "That is how we reached the current situation, that is why we cannot afford to lose any precious time."

"You're hiding something," Louise spoke plainly, staring up at Julio. "Why does she have to 'summon' someone? Why not have her 'contract' with someone?"

"Ah, the best familiar is the one that can, in time, come to understand and accept everything of their master. Every quirk, every expression-that is something only a summoned familiar may do. That is how the Void's power grow stronger, especially for the Heart of God. The stronger the bonds, the stronger the energy," Julio murmured. "Even with the Void-we are still facing an army of Elves. Every advantage would help."

"I appreciate honesty," Louise hissed back, "But I am not Tiffania. This is despicable. This is utterly despicable, and from a minister of God, I would have expected better!"

"So you will stand aside, Lady Valliere?" Julio asked.

"I'll talk with Tiffania," Louise said flatly. "You have done enough damage for the moment. You might have a pretty face, but you are horrible with girls."

Julio laughed cheerfully. "I am a priest, sworn to the Gods."

"There is nothing to laugh," Louise snapped curtly. "Saito...just bring him out, will you?" she knelt near Tiffania, who was still clutching on to a dirty and bloodied sweater handcrafted without a doubt. "I'll stay with Tiffania."

Saito nodded, and as Julio simply walked out, bowing primly as the door closed and left the two boys outside, the Japanese youngster had no idea what to make of the priest. They remained in quiet silence, contemplating one another and their surroundings, for a few minutes, or perhaps ten or more.

"You have never had to choose between a lesser evil and a greater evil, have you, Lord La Baume?" Julio asked offhandedly. "I can see it by the way you look at me as if I were scum, whereas the Pope, and I, merely have the best intentions in our hearts."

"The road to hell is paved with good intentions," Saito replied, locking eyes with the priest who simply smiled, and conceded the point.

"Perhaps so," Julio admitted. "But some live in hell to begin with," he murmured, "Should they not have proper roads, then?"

Saito did not answer.

He was too busy staring at the bright green portal in front of him.

 

[shadenight123]

Chapter Ninety-Four

Honestly, by this point, Saito didn't know what to expect. Perhaps it was because he didn't properly think it through, but the moment he passed through the shimmering portal of green, he found himself staring straight into the eye wide stares of both Tiffania and Louise.

"Uhm...hello?" Saito hazarded, shyly scratching the back of his head. Louise bolted for the door, opening up sharply and staring outside for a brief moment. She then closed it sharply once more, and marched resolutely back to Saito's side, grabbing him by the ear and pulling him away from the circle much to Tiffania's wide-eyed look.

"Now try again," Louise snapped. "Friend or not, you're not getting Saito. He's mine."

Tiffania awkwardly nodded, and began the chant again. Once more, the green portal appeared right in front of Saito's eyes. "Louise," Saito murmured, "The portal's still here."

He could feel Louise's fingers tighten around his arm. "No," Louise said sharply. "I'm not sharing you. I am not letting her do this. She can contract with another familiar then, but she won't do so with you."

"Louise, think about the future-"

"I don't care if the whole world goes up in flames!" Louise snapped angrily, "I don't give a damn if we end up flying sky-high!"

The green portal faded away, and Tiffania took a small breath. "I-I can probably try again?" she hazarded softly.

"You are," Louise snapped curtly. "As long as it's not Saito. Try to change the chant or something!"

No matter how much Tiffania tried, the green portal appeared always and without fault in front of Saito's eyes. "Louise..." he whispered once more, "It's going to be all right."

"A girl is going to kiss you," Louise said hotly, "As much as you might like it, it doesn't mean I have to like it too," she growled, her eyes half-narrow. "And you, have you no shame? Pinning after a married man-"

"We're not married!" Saito spluttered out, before quickly backpedaling at the murderous glare of Louise, "Yet!" The strawberry blond girl nodded sharply, clicking her tongue against her teeth.

"I'm-I'm not doing this on purpose!" Tiffania exclaimed, shocked and bewildered quite a bit. Her cheeks were fiercely red. "I-I just don't know why this is happening!"

Her hands clutched near her bountiful chest, Saito's eyes were inexplicably attracted to them bouncing up and down even though the situation was quite serious. Louise's elbow acted on instinct alone, slamming into his stomach and making him wheeze out what little breath he still had in his lungs.

"Perhaps I can be of assistance?" Vittorio asked from beyond the door.

"No!" Louise snapped. "We are going to try again," Louise said hotly, "And you will do your best not to think about Saito in any way, shape or form," she grabbed Saito by the sleeve of his clothes, "And you'd better not get any fancy ideas-"

"I'm not-really!" Saito replied, shaking his head and his arms at the same time, only for one of said arms to suddenly enter the green portal that had meanwhile once more appeared, just like clockwork, next to him. "Oh-"

"S-Saito your hand!" Louise snapped in shock, only for the pull of the portal to literally suck Saito in. "Saito!" Louise's scream was the last thing he heard before he emerged on the other side, slamming his lips straight against Tiffania's own as the duo crashed on the ground in a tangled mess of limbs.

"S-S-Saito," Louise's entire body trembled in pure rage as her eyes narrowed down to orbs of fury. "You couldn't help yourself, could you-" she grabbed the handle of her swordwand.

"It-It wasn't my fault!" Saito exclaimed, before stopping as the room began to spin in his sight. "Uh-Louise-" he coughed, "I'm not-not feeling-" pain unlike any other stabbed him through the chest as the runes that branded him as a familiar wrote themselves upon his skin with quite the fury, unlike the ones of the Gandalfr.

He clutched his chest and bent in two, screaming in pain as his heart drummed inside his rib cage with an intensity he had never felt before. "Oh-" Louise blinked, suddenly feeling woozy. "That's-am I the only one who's-"

She quickly recovered her wits as Saito simply slumped over, falling face first against the floor. "Saito!" Louise's scream was the last thing the boy heard before sweet darkness claimed his senses.

When he woke up, however, he was not in the infirmary. "Good evening," a man with long, blond hair spoke to him with a smile that seemed eerily similar to Julio's.

"How long did I sleep?" Saito asked warily, the only reason he didn't think years had passed was because the man did not have Julio's moon eyes, but otherwise he did pretty much resemble the Windalfr in his beautiful appearance. More than one head would have turned to stare and whistle appreciatively at him, of that Saito was pretty much sure. "And where am I?" he didn't recognize the place. For one thing, it didn't look like Tristain's Academy, and definitely it wasn't the infirmary.

"A few days," the man answered. "And you are currently in Romalia, within the pope's personal infirmary," he added with a small smile. "I, to present myself properly, am the Pope."

Saito squinted his eyes. "You look young."

The man laughed. "I am young," he added. He then sighed, quite wearily. "I hope you will forgive the current situation."

"Forgive?" Saito furrowed his brows in a puzzled expression, until the clanking from his writs told him he wasn't simply resting in the bed as much as being shackled to it. "What is the meaning of this?" he asked, trying to break free and failing miserably at that, especially due to the lack of weaponry.

"It is an unfortunate conundrum," the Pope sighed. "To think the Gandalfr and the Lífþrasir would turn out to be the same person," he smiled, "But history does have a habit of repeating itself, does it not?" he extended a hand, touching Saito's forehead as he closed his eyes. "The power within you now, that of the Void-it is a great power. Unfortunately, it comes as a cost. Know that it pains me greatly to have used this subterfuge, but there was not much of a choice. There never is."

"How did I get here?" Saito asked, moving his head to swat away the Pope's hand from his forehead.

"Julio kidnapped you from the Academy's infirmary with the aid of Lady Charlotte. I am to presume that he left both of your masters unharmed and whole, and they managed to transport you here in Romalia on the back of an Unicorn -although you were not a pure maiden, the Windalfr's power allows that and much more. She wished to visit you once you were in healthier conditions, but it is for the best if she does not."

Saito furrowed his brows. "Why?"

"Because, as the Heart of God, your destiny is to die," the Pope spoke plainly. "To empower the spells of a Void mage, the Lífþrasir sacrifices his own life force. I would like it if you were to accept your destiny, and act accordingly. Your sacrifice will save countless thousands-"

"What?! No! That's-Louise-"

"That is the main reason my familiar kidnapped you," the Pope spoke. "Although he would have done the same had it been someone else, since only the familiar was needed, never the mage who did the summon. Please, understand-I do not wish to force you through other means, but I will if the situation requires it." His eyes hardened considerably. "We stand at the verge of total annihilation. Just yesterday, an entire mountain range ruptured and floated away."

"Not a chance in hell!" Saito snarled, pushing against his bindings. "We could find a solution! One that isn't bloody! We could talk, cut a deal, do-"

"Ah," the Pope sighed. "I really held hope it wouldn't have come to this. Hopefully, the effects of the ring will last long enough-it was more than capable of controlling an Elf, if for such a short while-"

"Ring-What-"

Julio appeared from a previously unseen blind spot in Saito's vision. Had he perhaps hidden himself behind an armchair, or a piece of furniture, Saito didn't know. What he did know was that the strange runes that glittered above his forehead were eerily familiar to him, as was the ring in his fingers.

"Recovering it from the Water Spirit was quite a hassle. Thankfully I began following you since long before, waiting for my chance to strike," Julio chuckled as the runes on his forehead shone, the ring pointed at Saito. "Now, I think this will be the last time we speak to one another, at least, with you possessing all of your mental faculties, so know that your sacrifice will be remembered-"

And in that moment, in that moment in which the ring of Andvari began to shine brightly under the influence of Julio Chesare, shards of ice ruptured like deadly shrapnel through the wooden door and formed shackles that pulled the Windalfr's limb away and tied it to the floor.

Charlotte stood there, staff drawn and eyes narrow.

"No," she said firmly. "That was not part of the deal."

The Pope smiled sadly, and then lifted his right hand. "I understand. You have one day to convince him then, Lady Charlotte," he stood up, and with a wave of his own wand, shaped like a golden scepter, the ice that held Julio's fingers and limbs frozen dispersed into puddles of water. "If I were you, I would persuade him for his own good. Do not try to escape however," the Pope added. "Your familiar is still under the Windalfr's control."

"I know," Charlotte said bitterly, clutching the staff tightly as the last frozen fragments of the door around the doorway disappeared into glittering splinters of ice. Taking a deep breath, biting her lips up to the point where they drew blood, Charlotte stepped through the doorway with a single step, and then closed her eyes as she took the next step, firmly putting her past the doorway itself.

"It seems you are making progress on your fear of doors," Julio said amiably, only to have Charlotte's staff pointed at his face.

"Get out," Charlotte said sharply. The tip of the staff was trembling as she spoke, but Julio understood and bowed his head slightly, stepping outside with the Pope remaining quiet until the moment he was outside.

"One day," Vittorio said. "You have one day."

And then they both walked away, leaving behind in the pristine white and gold room a trembling blue-haired girl and an incensed dark-haired boy.

The first through that crossed Saito's mind however wasn't about his situation.

It was about Louise's reaction to this.

 

[shadenight123]

Chapter Ninety-Five

Charlotte's frame stopped trembling only once she had placed enough space between herself and the doorway, coming to a stop by the bedside, sitting down and calmly settling her staff on her knees. "You'll think I am a cruel person," Charlotte spoke, her voice soft.

"I know you aren't," Saito replied, "But I'd rather not have these around my wrists," he added, pulling at the chains that were tied to the bedposts.

"I'm sorry," Charlotte said with a weak smile, "But I cannot help you escape."

"I understand-It's about your dragon, right?" Saito asked. His voice was resigned, "Even then-Surely you understand how wrong this entire thing is."

Charlotte shook her head. "I have no right to complain," she said. "I asked for aid in taking down my uncle. Why should I now preach about morals, if I've broken them first?" her smile turned sad. "Even this is just a hypocrisy. Why should I not allow them when I did pretty much the same? This makes me a hypocrite-"

"Or maybe it makes you someone who understands she did something wrong, and now wishes to make things right," Saito said. "We can still find a peaceful solution to this, Charlotte. Do you know where your dragon is kept?"

Charlotte clutched her staff. "Even if I did-Even if we managed-they'd still be on us. The Windalfr can control all manners of beasts, with no limits. All birds, all rats, everything that walks the earth can become one of his familiars, even previous familiars can-"

"There has to be a way," Saito said. "Something we can do."

Charlotte giggled lightly. "Ever optimistic, Lord Saito."

Saito sighed. "If only the Elves could be talked with-I understand they tried once before, but trying again wouldn't hurt."

"I do not share your optimism on the Elves," Charlotte spoke softly, "If not for TIffania, I would not think of them any differently, but she is a good kid, and if I can avoid her further pain, then I will, no matter what might be my reckoning. I'd understand if you were to curse me. I am, after all, merely acting for my own personal interests."

"You're protecting your familiar, and your sister," Saito whispered. "What more could there be?"

"If I were to free you," Charlotte said quietly, "Would you help me once more?" her eyes looked at his, and Saito furrowed his brows. "When you fought against my Uncle, you did so because of a spell-the 'contract' spell. I-I made sure you'd see certain things, understood certain words, felt certain feelings...Water Magic, powerful Water Magic, can influence many things of a human body. Emotions, thoughts-you truly wished to kill my Uncle, because he had truly angered you by deeply hurting the one person you loved the most. That was why you killed him. It was Derflinger who spoke-but you were the one who did it. So, if I help you...can you do that? Can you kill the Pope, his familiar-everyone on your way out? Can you bath this city in blood?"

Saito's face whitened like the sheets he was currently resting beneath. "That-No matter how much you say that-I'd never-" and Charlotte thus sadly shook her head.

"See? You don't have the resolve to do what must be done, and that's why you can't win. If I help you, you have to do at least this much. It's the only way to make sure. A new Pope might be better, talking might still be tried, but you'll have to kill many to achieve it. If you can't fathom that, then it's useless for you to ask me to free you. You don't even know what you want, and if you do, you don't know how to achieve it."

"Maybe I don't," Saito said quickly, nodding his head. "But I know that this is wrong, and even if I don't have a better solution, I'll still fight this plan until my last breath."

"Just like a hero from a fairy tale then? Without thinking about consequences, simply caring about stopping evil because it's evil?" Charlotte asked once more. She pulled out a flask from her cloak. "This here-this is a powerful poison known as the 'Lost Heart' potion. If you were to drink this, you'd lose your abilities as the Gandalfr and go mad. They asked for it, should you prove too resistant to their mind control. With the Gandalfr, one can never be too safe. Certainly, making you drink this would work. At the same time, should you make the Windalfr drink this, he'd lose all ability to fight, and wouldn't be able to harm Sylphid. Then, it would be a matter of keeping him alive to prevent the Pope from summoning another."

She placed the flak on the bed desk. "If not a bath of blood, then this too can be done. Would you accept such a deal instead? Eternal madness for a lone person, in exchange for freedom?"

Saito swallowed heavily. "You came prepared."

"Yes," Charlotte answered. "But as you are, even if you were to give it your best, it wouldn't be enough. You need more."

Saito stared at the flask, and then at Charlotte. "You want to use that-that spell, right? That 'Contract' thing, once more."

Charlotte nodded. "It's not like I can stop you," Saito said. "Why are you asking me?"

"Because I don't want to," Charlotte murmured, "I can save you, if only you'd let me do this. However, I'll respect your decision, whatever it may be. Think of it as my offer of redemption for having kidnapped you. If you truly wish to be saved, if you truly want to believe your way is correct and that of the Pope isn't, then you'll have to do something unspeakable either way. I'll just make sure you cannot falter, because otherwise-I'd be the one who'd end up suffering from it."

"And if I say no?" Saito said.

"There is one last option," Charlotte answered plainly, moving from the edge of the bed to the shackle that bound one of his arms. "You can choke me with your bare hands," she added, quite calmly too. "If I were to die, the powers of the Mind of God would fail. Without them, they would not be able to control you. You do not trust me? Then kill me, I won't scream. With me dead, they won't have a reason to harm Sylphid, and Josette can take the throne in my place." She grabbed at the chain, and pulled it around her neck. "Here-you just have to move your arm and squeeze. I'll-"

"What! No!" Saito's yell did nothing to change Charlotte's face. "There's-There's no way-"

"Then what? What are you going to do, Saito? Kill me, madden Julio, or kill them all," Charlotte said as coldly as she could. "Or do you see another way? Any other way?" her hands did not tremble, even though she clutched her knees as she stood kneeling atop the bed by Saito's side.

"I-I don't know," Saito whispered in the end. "I just don't know."

Charlotte smiled sadly. "I know," she bent down, just enough to grab a lock of his hair with her right hand, "That's why I'll pick for you, wayward Ivaldi." Then she bent down, and roughly kissed him.

From afar, Julio watched through the eyes of a spider the proceedings. Even with all the effort she had put into it, the Queen of Gallia hadn't managed to convince the boy of his foolishness in resisting. She had done a great job making him understand his lack of choices. If he wished to keep acting like a moralistic white knight of fairy tales, then he was bound to come face to face with the reality of the situation.

Wishing for a future where nobody had to kill was nothing short than childish. Being nice would not convince the Elves to give the land that rightfully belonged to the humans back. Being kind would not work in harnessing the power of the Void. Founder Brimir had tied the power of the familiars to 'strong emotions' for a singular purpose: that of war. Why else would his familiars be the strongest the moment they found their resolve in battle?

"She really is doing her best," Julio remarked from his spot at the far end of the hallway. "She's resorting to everything she can," a lazy smirk appeared on his face, as Vittorio simply scoffed, his eyes closed in concentration to see the same things that his familiar did, clutching his papal staff and standing in wait.

"Even if he were to accept, stand ready with the ring of Andvari, Julio."

"You don't need to worry about me, your Holiness," Julio answered in turn.

Charlotte stepped outside with a light blush on her face, but quickly shook her head as she neared the two. "He refused," Charlotte whispered, appearing contrite. "Please give him the rest of the day to think."

"I did say he had one whole day," Vittorio remarked, nodding and extending a hand. "The poison of Lost Heart, if you'd be so kind."

Charlotte narrowed her eyes, and then quickly handed it over. Uncorking it, Vittorio poured it on the floor where it harmlessly dispersed. "Even I am not so vile as to use this type of poison on my foes," shaking his head, the Pope turned to leave.

"But you killed those children," Charlotte accused, her eyes narrow.

"What? No! Who do you take us for?" Vittorio looked aghast, and then turned towards Julio.

"The children are all safe within an orphanage. Perhaps it is not the orphanage they were expected into, but they will be cared for. The blood was just that of a pig-" Julio said, smiling his lazy smile.

"The man with them," Charlotte said, her eyes narrow.

"I ordered him to join the Crusades," Julio replied, waving his ring in front of her. "He should have arrived in Romalia by now, just one more recruit among the many faithful."

"Still inexcusable," Charlotte said firmly.

"A bit of a hypocrite, are we not?" Julio remarked, even as Vittorio began to climb upstairs from the dank hallway they stood in. The dank and dark and windowless hallway that would have been perhaps something more akin to a prison than the infirmary of a Pope, but when it came to safety, this tiny prison-like space was second to none.

The perfect place to keep the Gandalfr hidden.

The perfect place to break a man's will.

Deep within the room, Saito's breathing evened out as he kept his mouth shut, a tiny but sharp razor-like blade hitting the back of his throat. He turned his neck to the side, away from where the spider supposedly was -believing Charlotte- and as he coughed the blade out and gripped it within his teeth, he felt the rush of power of the Gandalfr activate.

Still, if they discovered this was done thanks to Charlotte -while she'd be willing to face the consequences of it, Saito wouldn't be able to.

So, he'd pick an option that would work.

He'd wring it.

It had worked out so well with the haunted mansion, so...

What could possibly go wrong?

 

[shadenight123]

Chapter Ninety-Six

Honestly, Saito didn't know how much a spider could see, or hear, but since his limbs were for the most part covered by sheets, he managed to free three out of four of them by quickly shattering a single ring of the chain for his arm, and then giving a quick pull with his legs for his lower limbs. He would probably feel it in the morning, but the last limb would alert Julio.

He pushed as much of his body beneath the sheets as he could, going as far as pulling the pillow above his head. Thus hidden, he quietly broke the last chain that held him prisoner, and then took a single breath.

The next instant, the bed remained as it was while Saito had quickly clutched at his blade and made his way out of the room. Hopefully, he had been fast enough the spider hadn't caught any movement. He didn't know where he was, but if he managed to escape without being seen, he had a chance at freeing Sylphid.

Where would they keep a blue dragon anyway?

If Tabitha had but told him-as he clutched the blade in his right hand, he looked down at its handle, where a few runes were etched in a thin, but legible handwriting. Third floor. Last room right.

He sighed and then smiled briefly. Well, he had a destination.

He'd have to knock out a blue dragon, but he was sure he could manage that. Then-Then perhaps Louise's 'Dispel Magic' could work?

So he'd have to drag an unconscious dragon through Romalia all the way back to Tristain. A few days had passed, but he was sure Louise was already on a war path.

As he carefully walked up the stairs at the far end of the corridor, he really wished there weren't other spider-spies hanging around. The stairs ended at a large iron door that seemed to scream 'noise maker' by the mere sight of the hinges. That was perhaps the idea behind it. There also was a light sheen of ice formed alongside its hinges, perhaps the byproduct of Charlotte's fear as she passed through it.

To talk to him, the girl had perhaps faced her fears far more than just once. It felt right he'd return the favor.

Thus Saito was very surprised when he saw the iron door swing open without a sound, nothing on the other side.

Had a ghost helped him?

He did bury that unlucky adventurer.

No, a ghost wasn't probably the best solution to this troublesome-a hand grabbed him by the wrist, making him yelp only for the sudden appearance of Daphne to widen his eyes beyond comical belief.

"Now you can yell as much as you want," the vampire snorted. "Do you know I had to keep up with a frigging Unicorn? Do you know how difficult it is to run behind an Unicorn? They're renowned for being fast, but they've got nothing on a flying vampire running after her precious stash of-" she coughed, "Well, keep hold of my hand, will you, you delicious morsel, and perhaps we'll get out of here without a fuss-"

"Daphne?" Saito mumbled, surprised.

"No, it's the tooth fairy. Of course it's me," Daphne added, starting to pull him along. "The things I do for a fine pint of blood-you are one lucky -and delicious- guy, so don't you forget it."

Saito nervously chuckled. "Where's Louise?"

"She's not as fast as me, of course. I did tell her I'd get you back, so you just have to sit tight and let me do my job and we'll be out before-"

"We can't," Saito said. "Not yet at least-"

The vampire stopped. "You want to kill the Pope? Mind you, I'm not against it-"

"No!" Saito exclaimed. "We have to rescue a prisoner."

The vampire groaned. "Look, you're not playing white knight. How about we come back later?"

"If they find out she helped me escape, then they'll kill the hostage," Saito retorted hotly. "She risked everything to help me-it's the least I can do to help her in turn."

The hallways were of a pristine white with golden motifs of holy virgins or saints, paintings depicting miracles and the gods adorning each wall. Daphne didn't know why she was even considering the possibility, but then she felt the drumming of Saito's heart through her fingers, and all of that delicious blood-well, yes, she knew why she was considering it.

"Let's say...how about two pints?" Daphne asked, showing her fangs with a wicked smile. Her finger traced beneath Saito's chin with a lazy attitude, and then stopped just an inch away from his jugular. "We can do something private, you and I-nobody needs to know."

"You'll help afterwards?" Saito asked, his voice betraying his nervousness.

"Of course I will," Daphne snorted. "Who do you take me for?"

Saito nodded, his eyes narrowing in firm determination. "Then let's do it. We have to reach the third floor, then we have to knock out a Rhyme Dragon, but-"

"You know what, nobody said I couldn't haggle for a higher price," Daphne said offhandedly. "Is it four or five pints that one can drink without killing someone? Let's say I'll go with four pints."

Saito was about to open his mouth, but Daphne smiled, "But you'll say no, so we'll go with three. Three pints of blood and I'll knock-out that Rhyme Dragon and carry it away because I'm a Vampire and I can do that sort of stuff."

Daphne then draped herself around Saito's right arm, gingerly rubbing her cheek against it. "You just wait and sit tight in there, mommy's going to drink and lap you all up with a straw," she cheerfully giggled, tapping at a vein with her fingers.

Saito was starting to feel mighty uncomfortable. Perhaps if he had a whistle, his veins could use it and call for help.

They passed by dozens of guards, all wearing white capes and long spears that resembled golden staves. The Papal guard did not notice them, even as Daphne more than once shot her tongue out while passing in front of them. This was quite the scary power -the more he saw it in action, the more he grew disquieted by it.

"Well, we Vampires are renowned for being creatures of the night, but that's just because we don't like the sun," Daphne said. "It's also easier to hide in the shadows, unless you've spent the last decades learning how to craft illusions that cannot be shattered so easily."

"I didn't say anything," Saito said. Was there also mind-reading in the mix? The Vampires of Halkeginia were really scary.

"Your heart cannot lie," Daphne said with a grin. "Unless you aren't afraid, and are actually excited that a pretty girl like me is holding your hand? If you want, I can show you heaven-"

Saito turned crimson. "Oh, a cherry boy? You should see what I do with my tongue with cherries-" Daphne giggled, and shook her head. "But then Louise would try to kill me, and Pierre would be sad, and the Heavy Wind would probably tear apart half the house like she did the last time I played a prank on her husband. Seriously, the pink-haired Valliere are always so possessive and so, so jealous. It's not fun at all."

"Could we concentrate?" Saito asked softly. "This isn't going to be easy-"

"If something goes wrong I'll just knock you out," Daphne rolled her eyes. "That Derflinger fellow of yours at least knows his way in a fight."

"Derflinger?" Saito furrowed his brows. "But that's the name of the sword-"

A door swung open on the third floor, and as Charlotte walked out of it accompanied by Julio, the blond-haired fop looked bemused, as if something funny had just happened in the room they had left.

"Let me accompany you, your Grace," Julio said with a warm smile. "Wouldn't want that dastardly fellow getting violent upon your chaste lips once more now, would you?"

Charlotte said nothing, but simply began to walk down the corridor and towards them.

Daphne's left hand extended in claws as her teeth grew into fangs. "Well-" Daphne hissed, "Time for dinner-"

"No!" Saito hissed, "Charlotte's on our side!"

Daphne blinked, and then nodded most wisely. "Oh-that's how you freed yourself. Very well-"

Her left hand came cruising for Julio's head the next instant, a deadly swing that would have lopped a normal human's head off neatly and without fuss. Unfortunately, an invisible barrier suddenly sprung to light and blocked the blow, reverberating across the corridor as Daphne's self revealed itself, soon followed by Saito's own.

Julio's eyes didn't widen, but instead narrowed as he unsheathed his blade. "The Elf's Counter is truly a wondrous spell," he added in a quiet voice, "It was well thought of me to acquire an enchanted amulet of it," his forehead shone just as his right hand did. "Well, prisoners should go quietly back to their cells."

Saito gritted his teeth, clutching the razor with his right hand.

"Well," Daphne smiled, "This makes things interesting."

Charlotte's staff came up as she took position right next to Julio, her mouth already chanting through her signature spell.

No plan survived contact with the enemy.

But why did it have to be his plans that always failed so badly!?

 

[shadenight123]

Chapter Ninety-Seven

Whatever this 'Counter' Spell was, Daphne decided to opt for another solution. Her claws slammed down on the floor -the rock floor- and as they crushed it to paste they created a pathway that allowed for them both to hastily avoid the swing of Julio's sword, just as much as the ice javelins of Charlotte herself.

One floor down, the Templar guards sprung to action immediately, the noise and the sight of two strangers within the holy halls of His Holiness more than enough to incense and anger them beyond belief. They roared as they swung their staves-spears, but as Saito deftly sidestepped a thrust and slammed the handle of the blade into the neck of a guard, he quickly disarmed the man and took the strange weapon for his own.

Spinning the staff around, he thrust it forth as Charlotte was the first one to come at him from the hole, and he struck her unconscious with the blunt side of the weapon. The girl simply smiled awkwardly, rolling back and going limp on the floor. The rest of the movement knocked out the remaining Templars, who were easily no match as he struck them on their helmets with enough strength to send them to the land of sleep.

Julio would prove to be far more difficult to defeat.

"Do you know why you are no match for me?" Julio asked calmly, even as he dropped down from the hole without a care in the world, the weapons pretty much useless against him, even as Daphne's body tensed as she carefully crept away from him. "It's because you do not have what it takes to fully unlock the powers of the Void," Julio snapped, his left hand raised, his forehead shining briefly. A small pebble roughly the size of a skipping stone popped up from within his palm, the color a rich crimson. "These are Firestones. Similar to Windstones, Earthstones and Waterstones-they hold within the power of the spirits. Against vampires, they are the most apt solution."

"You talking to yap your mouth?" Daphne asked, her eyes half-narrow.

"No," Julio replied with a smile. "I'm talking so that you will waste time listening," the red skipping stone shone and then pulsed, cracking as a long tongue of fire erupted from the man's palm and shot forward towards her. The figure of Daphne flickered and disappeared.

"You might be impossible to hit, but don't you forget illusions are the vampire's strength!" Daphne's cheeky voice came just as Saito's tensing form disappeared too from Julio's sight. With a sigh, Julio lifted the Ring of Andvari and allowed it to shine briefly.

"Water spirits will not aid you," Daphne's form appeared at the far off end of the corridor, the vampire looking puzzled, and then her eyes narrowed. "Not while I hold dominion over the ring-"

"Then I'll just have to take it from you!" Saito's exclamation was met with his blade coming dangerously close to Julio's face, even though the blond-haired priest narrowed his eyes and deftly avoided the blow, a lone strand of golden hair fell all the same on the ground. Saito's runes shone brightly, perhaps a miniature sun of their own.

The miniature sun dulled down, returning to the glint of before.

"Are you a moron?!" the staff suddenly spoke hotly, "Go for a killing shot, kid!" the staff spun in Saito's hands, easily avoiding the downward coming swing with the furthermost side of the spear-staff, "I don't have Willpower to spare! To hell with it-the great Derflinger will show you how it's done!" Saito blinked as his body moved backwards to put distance between him and Julio.

"You-You talk?" Saito parroted. "Wait-your name-"

"I'm Derflinger, soul staff right now, and yes I'm the same as the one before. Now, listen up!" the staff snapped curtly, if a staff could snap, of course. "The Elf Counter's a tricky piece of shit business, but we can defeat it! It takes Void Magic, or strong enough concussive force to do the trick! And we can thankfully do a bit of both, but my Willpower's limited so you've got only one shot. Aim for the head, lop it off, and victory will be ours! But you've got to strike him down in an all or nothing one-hit technique!"

Julio's eyes twinkled for a brief instant, "Ah, that worried me for a minute," he remarked. "But I can rest safely, knowing the Gandalfr will never strike me down."

"Can't I use the blunt side of the staff?" Saito retorted, holding his guard up as Julio simply kept Daphne in his sighs, the Vampire having carefully begun to creep towards him from up above.

Around them, knocked out Templars were slowly coming to their senses once more. If this kept up, Saito would soon be surrounded.

"I go through the blade! The blade, not the side-so strike to kill, or don't strike at all!" Derflinger snapped, "Come on! How hard can it be? Just kill him and be done with it!"

Saito clenched the staff firmly in his hands, his teeth gritting together. Julio simply smiled, and then laughed. "You ask yourself why we had to resort to this? Then look no further than your shaking self," Julio shook his head, extending both arms and leaving himself wide open to Saito's stabbing, should he at least try to do so. "Come on, Gandalfr, shield of God, router of armies-you cannot even fight me? You cannot even kill me when you are given the chance? Truly pathetic! You think your kindness will reward you in this life? Well!?"

A tongue of flames snapped out from Julio's fingers, cruising above his head to where Daphne had tried to reach, in order to pass past the priest and reach Saito's side. A second stone, if light brown, came up in Julio's hands and as fists of rock erupted from the ground, they shattered against the walls and struck Daphne against it.

"Devoid of their precious spirits, many Firstborn magic users are nothing but mewling babes," Julio remarked. "Perhaps shall I need to activate your white knight senses? Should I burn this spawn of hell to cinder and ashes to finally elicit a reaction from you?" the cracked crimson stone was brought up once more. "Because just say so, Gandalfr, not that I will stop just because you ask me to."

"Why are you doing this!?" Saito snapped. "If I kill you, if I do that-your plan will fail!"

"Are you stupid?" Julio snorted. "Do you really think my life has worth? I am but an instrument of his Holiness' will. I will gladly lay down my life and die for my beliefs, and if you are incapable of doing the same, then you truly are a worthless familiar. We are an extension of our masters-you should know this very well. Even if I die, I can be replaced. If that's the case, then there is no problem. Kill me, and you'll become capable of killing others-do that, and maybe you won't be so worthless in the upcoming crusade. You cannot stop it, the armies have mobilized already. You can only lead, or be led."

The fire from the previous blast began to burn around them, eagerly devouring at the carpet and lapping up all the way to Daphne's form, not unconscious, but bound to the wall by rock-like hands that gripped her tightly and did not seem inclined to let her go.

The flames kept away from Julio because of the Counter amulet, but did not lap at Saito's feet out of some form of air pressure surrounding the boy.

"Sir Julio-" a Templar groaned, clutching his head as he began to stand up once more.

"I see," Saito mumbled, "So this is what it means-well," he clenched the staff tightly. "I won't let you win this easily."

"No? No matter what?" Julio sighed. "Truly, you are a wonder. How far can I push you though?" the priest smiled, a sudden thought striking him. "Well, why not? Let's bring our fight somewhere more private!" as the two stones, the Fire and Earth one splintered further, spheres of magma shot from the ground coalescing from the flames and the rubble, slamming into Saito's guard as the staff itself began to absorb the magic within the enemy's spell.

Even then, the attack was strong enough that it sent Saito to fly back across the corridor, Julio swirling in mid-air behind him as a pale teal stone cracked to grant him flight. They were on the second floor, so when Saito ended up flying outside the window, the fall wouldn't have been immediately fatal.

Still, his problems were no longer about height, but about the rather hungry-looking dragon that somehow found its way right beneath him, forcing Saito to spin in mid-air and use the spear staff to impale the creature's flank, ripping his stomach open and dulling his fall down in the palace's gardens with a shower of blood drenching him from head to toe.

"So you have no such compulsions in killing beasts, but a mere man makes you tremble in fear?" Julio said with a light giggle, "Truly fascinating, your naive innocence is so refreshingly disgusting I never thought I'd see something similar if not in young children, pampered by rich parents," he began to lazily walk forward, his sword drawn. "As the Gandalfr, you are an utter failure. You, lead an army? You'd barely take a step and then run away at the first sign of blood."

Julio chuckled, and then was quickly in range of Saito's staff. The boy swung it by instinct, but the Counter worked once more properly, and thus the attack was redirected backwards. The spinning of the staff allowed Saito to block the swing of the priest's rapier, but by then it was too late as the Ring of Andvari came an inch away from his face and shone.

"Now, Gandalfr, I will have you kneel-"

As his legs gave away under the pressure of the ring's magic, his eyes narrowed to stare into those of Julio. "See?" Julio smiled softly. "When ideals clash, it's only those willing to go the extra mile that eventually win. Keep your childish feelings to yourself-you had so much potential...and you squandered it playing the adventurer."

Saito ground his teeth, even as his vision swam into darkness, the ring's magic taking hold over him. "Now you will obey, and when this is done and you are but a husk devoid of strength, perhaps you'll be left with a few days of life. With those, do as you-"

Spears. Spears of stone and polished steel slammed through the Counter spell with a graceful ease that made Julio balk, soon followed by a graceful descend from the air as a scimitar shattered through the defenses of the Windalfr and sliced neatly the priest's arm off, before a graceful kick sent the Romalian Twin-Eyed man to slam backwards, through the hedges of the garden and away from Saito's view.

"Safeguard the Anubis," a crisp voice spoke in a clear, female voice. "Defeat the Demon."

Saito blinked as strong arms grabbed and pulled him away, clothes of dark grey mixed with blotches of green appearing, if briefly, in his vision.

A lone male Elf held him under his arm, "Let go of the weapon," he spoke kindly as he dragged him away. "Or I cannot help you further, Saint Anubis. The spirits are repulsed by your powers."

"Uh?"

"Well," Derflinger mumbled. "See you later, kid. You're in safe hands now. If it's you, I guess it will be all right."

Saito's fingers opened up against his will, the staff dropping down as apparently the Elf hadn't been merely running forward, but also higher, easily reaching a speed that could be compared to that of a dragon.

Behind him, the roar of dragons was accompanied by the cawing of manticores and various magical beasts that soon joined the fray in the fight between the wounded Windalfr and the Elf in question.

Only one thought swam in Saito's head as he was pulled away from the Pope's palace.

What about Daphne?

Daphne didn't really have a problem. Honestly, with the sleeping Rhyme dragon slung on her shoulder, she eyed the retreating Elf and bit down on her lips with her fangs quite firmly. She could pursue the Elf, but with the large overgrown blue lizard on her back, and having to keep it under a 'Sleep' spell, it didn't make things easy.

Well, she honestly did want her pints of blood, and if she left the dragon there, then it didn't really matter -not to her- but in the long run, wasn't it better to get the blue-haired mage on their side rather than have her stay on the Pope's one? One more, one less-oh, to hell with it!

"Mini-Karin is going to kill me when I come back with a dragon and not her fiancé," Daphne said in a soft whisper as she hastily made her exit from the slightly burnt palace -knocking out those fools of a Templar guard hadn't been hard, once the spirits had returned to her side. She was pretty sure the Windalfr was in a pinch, perhaps the Elf currently fighting him was the explanation, but she was starting to retreat too.

Somehow, nobody had bothered with the giant twelve headed Hydra in the backyard of the Pope's Holy Palace, and that was just one among the many animals that stood eagerly behind the Windalfr's fury, thrown now at the Elf in question.

Before, the priest had been playing.

Now, he was outright murderous.

Well, one dragon more, one dragon less...he wasn't going to notice until it was too late.

Just long enough for her to reach the border, then.

She would have loved to kill him there, but-but well, with all those wild magical animals suddenly breaking free-it would be a carnage, a senseless slaughter of innocents. There was a city around the Pope's palace, not an open field. She really hated it when people reminded her that doing good deeds was actually something possible, and that chivalrous moron of a fiancé of mini-Karin kept reminding her of them.

...

Maybe that was why his blood was so tasty.

There was a reason Vampires were depicted as drinking the blood out of fair, innocent maiden.

Innocence...ah, innocence tasted just plain delicious.

 

[shadenight123]

Chapter Ninety-Eight

Hiraga Saito was a normal boy. He was a normal Japanese boy. He had thought his life boring, and had sought change. When it had happened, he had enjoyed it at first, he really had. New things, different things, fun things like magic, but also bad things like hunger, thirst, being dirty and seeking out baths everywhere. Still, he had kept his mood up.

Then realization had sunk in that this was going to be his world for the rest of his life, because he had fallen in love, he really had, and thus wouldn't leave Louise behind, not when she had a family that thought her dead, not when she literally had the future of this world on her shoulders. It would be horribly selfish of him to just leave her to her fate.

So he had made his choice. He had thought it easy. He had thought that making a choice was the right thing to do, that it was the best thing to do, that there was nothing wrong in choosing to be the valiant hero.

Whenever a character in a game had to pick a choice, normally it was obvious they'd go for the good one. It was obvious that the heroes would win the day, and only the truly bad would die, and normally fights weren't about killing, but knocking out.

Yet he didn't know anymore. No, perhaps it was that he never really wanted to think about it properly. Saying 'I want to be a hero, I want to be the Knight' didn't mean one became it. Shamelessly saying things, but then never truly meaning them-was that the extent of his resolve?

"You have questions, Saint Anubis?" it was an old Elf that spoke to him. The elf that had dragged him away hadn't brought him very far, only upwards, beyond the clouds and to where a floating ship rested. It was far smaller than what he had seen in Albion, and seemed to be devoid of cannons. On the other hand, it made up for it with the Elves that seemed to be keenly conversing with the air itself, their arms tense in front of them, their bodies lightly armored.

A few had floating bows twirling lazily around them, the arrows suffused with energy that glowed softly.

"I-" Saito mumbled. "I guess?"

"Follow me then," the old Elf said kindly, gesturing for the way below deck. "The winds are positively chilly up here, and my old bones cannot withstand such temperatures for long without bothering the spirits for warmth."

"Uh-I," Saito muttered, shaking his head. "All...right?"

The young elf that had instead brought him up simply returned to the side of the ship and then looked down, clicking his tongue in disgust. "Serenna's having trouble-" he nodded. "We have to move."

The Elves that were conversing with the air itself nodded, and with a nimbleness that Saito wouldn't have expected the ship followed suite, flying at a speed that was considerably faster than what he had experienced before.

"Better for us to move downstairs," the elder said with a dry chuckle, "Us weary old elves must stay away from the flames of war of youngsters," Saito followed mostly because he didn't think his help was needed, and even if it was, what help could he give except that of fumbling around without a weapon? "Would you not agree, Saint Anubis?"

"I'm not-my name's Saito, sir," Saito said hesitantly as he followed the elf down the wooden stairs, all the way into a room that had a kind of one thousand and one nights vibe to it. Sitting on a plush pillow, the old Elf simply smiled, and nodded. He gestured for another pillow, which was directly by his side, and as the smell of green tea filled the air, Saito furrowed his brows. It felt so familiar, it was just like being home.

"That might perhaps be the name you cherish, but it is not who you are," the elf said, "You are the Saint who saved our people, and you are the demon who condemned thousands of others," he smiled bitterly. "It is ironic, I suspect, that such a thing happened. It is not the first time, but neither will it be the last, but I forget myself. I am Nepthys, Nepthys the Second, do not confuse me with my son," he raised a lonely old finger in a 'no-no' gesture.

His hair was long and grey, but it didn't cover his long pointy ears. There was something vaguely familiar to him, but Saito couldn't place what it was.

"So...Mister Nepthys The Second?" Saito hazarded. "I'm Saito, Hiraga Saito. It is nice to meet you," he said formally and properly. His parents would be pleased, no doubts about that.

"Nepthys will do just fine," Nepthys answered with a shaky nod. "Now, would you like a cup of tea?" as he asked that, he gestured to a steaming pot in the middle of the room, the source of the fragrance that made Saito nostalgic. Saito squirmed due to the proximity. Wouldn't it have been better if they sat one in front of the other?

"This is herbal tea that is imported from the lands beyond Rub," Nepthys said softly. "I assure you, it is not poisoned."

Saito stared briefly at the empty cup in front of him, and then gave a small smile, "I'd like some, please."

"Well-mannered too? Politeness suits the young," the old elf chuckled as he grabbed the pot from the center of the table and deftly poured two hot steaming cups of green tea. "You have questions, Mister Saito, but I am sure they can wait until we have drank a bit of hot tea," Nepthys spoke as he gently deposited the teapot back to its rightful place and held his cup with both of his hands, softly blowing away the tiny columns of haze that emerged from it. He took a lone sip, just as Saito did pretty much the same.

"Ah-it's good," Saito murmured. "It's really good." He closed his eyes for a brief moment. "I-I just want to know what will happen now," he said in the end, shuddering slightly. One elf was already an impossible odd, a ship of them was downright suicidal.

"Nothing," Nepthys replied with a shrug. "I ordered you saved because I saw you fight a demon, thus I knew that Saint Anubis was within you, and whoever is blessed by Her deserves our aid unless he has been corrupted. Have you the desire to persecute the Elves and lead a crusade against our species?" as he asked that, Saito stammered and shook his head firmly.

"No!" Saito exclaimed, "I just-I didn't want that! That's why they tried to convince me-the Pope and Julio, but I refused. If Charlotte hadn't helped me-wait, what about Daphne? I have to-"

"Do not worry," Nepthys spoke crisply. "The Vampire has left the premises together with a young Rhyme dragon," he smiled softly. "There is little that can escape our ears, especially when it concerns the spirits." He tapped with one of his fingers at the tip of his ears, chuckling softly. He took another sip of tea, and descended into peaceful silence.

"So...I can leave?" Saito asked.

"Will that change anything?" Nepthys asked carefully. "You were saved today, but that removed our cover. They will be wary of the skies now, and should this happen again-but you are, of course, free to leave."

Saito clenched the cup of hot tea in his hand, and took a sip of it. It calmed him down. "I just don't know what to do. Every time it feels like I have found the answer, but then when it comes the moment, it slips away from me."

"Perhaps you never found the answer to begin with, but simply picked the way you felt was best," Nepthys answered. "There is what is right, and what is easy. Sometimes, the two paths coincide. Sometimes, they do not."

"Could you answer something for me?" Saito asked softly, receiving but a brief nod in reply from the old elf. "Were the Pope's words true? Is there really no way for humans and elves to coexist peacefully?"

The Elf chuckled softly, and stared at the half empty cup of tea in his hands. "Understand this-we Elves-we do not believe in monarchies. We cohabit peacefully upon the land and divide ourselves in tribes, and that which the elders decide is best for all. The Chiefs among the tribes are also senators, who congregate in the senate and elect a Guide, known as the Guide of Nadis, who has limited power. We do not hate humans, we trade with humans-we commerce with them, we befriend them even-" here he sighed, "But the Markey are not humans, and the Void is a Taint, a taint that corrupts, that spreads, that is brought forth by malicious wills of their own and that has brought pain and misery among many, scattered through many tribes-" he smiled bitterly. "And that is why old wounds fester and linger-even if we could help, we decided aptly not to. It is the Markey's mess-let the Markey solve it or die."

He closed his eyes, and hummed softly. "Do you know-Do you truly know, what the Void is? Why we call those who bear the mark demons? Why we seek out those who can cast the spells and give them a merciful sleep of the heart and the mind?" he chuckled softly. "The humans, the Markey, they'll say we do it because we fear that power. It is not true. If we wished for it, the very ground would rise and snuff out every single living being we despise. We do not, because that is not the will of the world. We know of what awaits humanity, we know of those who came before-of the Spirit that came Before all Others, and we know of the crisis, but that is the Will of the Great Purpose, so it cannot be changed."

Nepthys sighed. "Understand that the world is merely answering to the earnest plea of the dying races. Understand this-sins must be paid in full. If you cannot pay, then your children will. If your children cannot, then your grandchildren will. The earth will make the Markey pay for what they have done. The earth has time, it has will, it has power. Even if the Markey were to move, their sins would follow them, crawling upon their back. Until the will of the Earth dies," Nepthys whispered. "Until the collective consciousness of all life dies, the Markey will pay the price for the blood spilled."

"But-But that's unfair," Saito whispered. "I-I don't understand much, if at all, but why should someone pay if he's innocent? The father's crime, they aren't the son's, are they?"

The elf simply laughed. "Do not give to spirits the same logic you give to man. An eye was gouged out? Then an eye needs to be gouged out to even the score. Whole races were slaughtered, killed, butchered-what you call 'The Founder' is to the eyes of the Will a brutal monster drenched in blood." Nepthys shuddered, as if recalling something unpleasant. "And for a while we did aid him, and that is the sin we carry upon ourselves, the reason we decided to opt for peace, rather than violence in our dealings. That is why we will not pay the price-" the old elf coughed slightly, taking a long sip of the cup of tea in his hands. "But the Markey did not listen. They quarreled among themselves-they fought and bled and brought up strife for land that they claimed was theirs, when one cannot own the land, one cannot own the spirits. They angered the earth, the Will of all, and because of that-they will pay."

Nepthys smiled softly. "I apologize if these words shock you, Saito. However they are the truth."

"Even if they were-even if those words were real-there has to be another way. Something! Anything-"

"When people build houses upon a moor, and the high tide drowns their children, the fools yell at the sea," Nepthys remarked. "The wise blame themselves, and make amends by building their houses upon sturdy rock. They do not dry out the sea, for the sea came before them, and the sea will return after them."

His eyes were kind as they looked straight into Saito's own. "This is not your fight, Saito. This does not need be your way. The humans will come, they will fight, and they will die. We will pray for their souls to find peace, and a decade will pass, more land will be lost, and in the end, the fools who did not heed the call of the spirits will pay with their lives."

"How can you be so cruel about it?" Saito said hotly. "There are-There are children! There are innocent people who did nothing wrong! You can't be this callous."

"So we should allow the world to die?" Nepthys replied softly, with a small sad smile on his face. "I understand if you feel this way. It makes none of us happy that the Markey must perish, but there is no choice. Down to the last of them, they must die. Thus, the Void will end. Thus, the corruption will cease being spread."

Saito swallowed the remaining green tea in his cup, and closed his eyes shut. "I-" his voice was trembling, "I can't do that."

"You have to do nothing," Nepthys answered truthfully. "You merely need not to fight. No matter the path you choose, it will end with blood. Is it perhaps unjust? Unfortunately, it is the nature of this world."

He began to refill his cup of tea. "I am an old elf. I am here merely because I wish to see justice served, nothing more, and nothing less," his lips curled slightly, and he sighed once more.

"So if I do nothing, the humans die. If I do something, the elves die," Saito clenched his fists, "Why? Why can't a solution be found? I-I'm not old or wise like you or the others, so-so why can't you find one?"

"The longer a mistake is left to itself, the wider the shadow it casts," Nepthys spoke after a brief instant of twirling the green tea gently with his hands. "It takes courage to accept one's view might be wrong. Unfortunately, it is now too late to make amends. The planet will render judgment," he took another sip. "And all will pay."

"Isn't there a way?" Saito asked. "A way to-to I don't know-to make them stop?"

"If there was, it is not something I can achieve, and unless this Pope is taken care of, or ceases calling forth his troops-until the demons are dealt with-the Shaitan's Gate is activating once more, and with each day that passes, the death of the world lingers closer," Nepthys murmured. "So do nothing, and let us do as we have always done. Without their Heart and Shield, they are unable to complete the Demon's ritual, and thus like the crusades before, this one too will end in nothing more than dead corpses to be quietly devoured by the creatures of the desert."

Saito's face blanched, but so too did his knuckles. Only the sound of the old elf sipping tea quite calmly echoed in the room. It didn't even feel as if they were flying, no matter how fast he had seen the ship set sail.

"There's got to be something," Saito whispered. "The Pope said that reaching the gate-whatever it was, would stop the windstone crisis from happening."

"It would also mean the death of the World's spirits," Nepthys answered quietly. "And that would spell the death not just of the Elves, but of Firstborn magic as a whole. Dragons would fall into slumber and die, Vampires would disappear into ashes, many creatures would cease to exist altogether shortly thereafter. Why? Because of the egoism of a few people?"

"They aren't a small amount! They're-it's whole nations!" Saito exclaimed.

"And so there are whole nations on the other side," Nepthys said. "There are mermaids who swim free and unbound, Bird Men who spread their wings in the wide sky-how many must suffer for no crime of their own?"

"There has to be a way," Saito said firmly. "A way-any way, some-some form of magical sword that can fix this! Something-anything-" and then he blinked. "My world-"

"Your world?" Nepthys remarked. "Ah, then you are not from Rub altogether-I understand now why you felt so soft."

"That's-anyway! My world! If we can bring the people that are a problem out of Halkeginia-can you fix it? Would you be willing to fix it?"

"Uhm," Nepthys tapped his chin. "The power of the Void should perhaps cease to transmit itself if it came from the other world-or come through severely weakened. An exile of the Demons into your world? Well, if that was possible then of course, I could discuss it with the Senate, but they would be willing to agree to at least aid in giving more time to the people of Halkeginia. I still am owed a few favors, old as I am."

Saito took a small breath. "Thank you." He bowed his head, only for the old elf to rasp on it gently, gesturing for him to keep it up.

"But how would you bring them through? Giving a solution without having a plan, I cannot present such a thing only on hope and dreams," Nepthys added wryly. "You do not have the strength, even as the Saint Anubis of legends, to stand up against the Mind and the Right hand of God, thus your plan is impossible to realize."

"But that's-it's just that...argh, he wanted me to kill him!"

"And since when must you allow the enemy to dictate your approach on such matters?" Nepthys replied dryly. "All swords have a blunt side, do they not?"

"I just-it felt as if attacking him could only happen if I wished to kill him," Saito mumbled. "It's-No, maybe I just didn't want to do it? Maybe he convinced me, just a tiny bit, and I didn't want to win? Could that be it?"

"Such wishy-washy feelings are only possible in the truly young who do not know what they seek," Nepthys mumbled. "You wish to bring forth peace between Markey and Elves, and you wish to do with minimum bloodshed?"

Saito nodded at that.

"Then it's impossible with how you are like now," Nepthys nodded most wisely. "A tiny gust of wind, and you'd fold under pressure. Where is your will? Where is your desire? If you want something, then strive for it. Asking counsel to wise old men is agreeable, but it is not us who should have the last word. Youth should have that headstrong quality that makes them endearing and foolish, not be so pliable to bend their head at the tiniest of scoffs."

Nepthys shook his head. "The reason is far simpler. Until you act, until you put your foot down, you can tell others 'you didn't want this', so even if you're wrong, they'll accept it. You don't want the responsibility that comes with claiming something is right and fighting for it. Everyone is capable of speaking, few are capable of acting."

Nepthys sighed, and finished his second cup of tea. "But I am glad for the company. Very few youngsters are willing to put up with an old elf rambling about."

Saito stood up suddenly, as if a sudden flash of insight had caught him. "Dealing with the Pope alone-it wouldn't solve the problem. Even dealing with Julio wouldn't solve the problem. There's an army camped out here-an army of crusaders who believe in the Pope. Killing the Pope or knocking and exiling him-it would mean nothing, and just make them angrier. People would still die."

"Oh?" Nepthys remarked with a dry smile, an eyebrow raised. "So what is your intention?"

Saito clenched his fingers tightly. His body was sore, but still not sore enough he couldn't fight.

"If I'm really determined-if I really want it-then there's nothing I can't do, is that right?"

"That is what legends say of Saint Anubis, indeed," Nepthys nodded slowly. "Have you decided?"

"I'll break their legs," Saito said in the end, quite simply. "With their legs broken, they won't be capable of doing anything for months. If I break their legs, defeat the Pope, defeat Julio, if I do that once, then nobody will go against what I have to say-even if it's something as horrible as 'please listen to the Elves'. If the Pope really wishes to save his people-if he really wishes to save the world he lives in, then he'll accept an exile, won't he?"

"And if he refuses?"

"Then I'll just drag his unconscious body to the airplane and strap him to it. It has to be somewhere around here-I know he must have taken possession of it."

"Those are bold words," Nepthys said softly. His eyes crinkled. "If it's the Saint, then he does have a chance. However, will you be able to keep up until the end?"

Saito clenched a hand right over his chest. "If the mages can use this power-" he muttered, "Then why can I not? Even if it means I'll live one less year, then it simply means I'll die when I'm ninety than when I'm ninety-one."

Nepthys chuckled. "Well, if you have made your decision clear...you will have to prove it next," as he spoke, he gingerly gestured towards the door by the side of the room, rather than the one they had taken to step inside. "There's the armory there-many of those blades are unruly children, but a few do not have a voice, so claim them for your use and be on your way."

Saito stood up carefully from the pillow and made his way to the door, hesitating only briefly on its premises. "Why are you being so helpful?" Saito asked, only for the old elf to simply crinkle his eyes in reply.

"I am an old elf," he answered in turn. "I have seen so many, many wars. I have seen so much blood, and I have prayed for a miracle with all my heart-if these crusades would stop, if peace would come, then perhaps-perhaps everyone would be happy for once," he sighed and stared at the tea pot once more. "The older one gets, the more regrets he has. The Great Purpose-it does not like meaningless battles, it does not like senseless slaughter. Thus, that it wishes to kill innocents, even as a way to pay their sins-I do not believe it like others do. Perhaps I am but a fool," he smiled and filled his cup for the third time. "But I am old, so senility is to be expected."

"Thank you," Saito whispered, opening the door and stepping through.

The old elf simply smiled, and took another sip.

"I did as was asked," he whispered to the wind, that would carry it to the water. "He simply needed a push in the right direction, that kid." He chuckled gingerly as he received his reply through his ears.

'If the Gandalfr finds himself in need, then by all means, aid him'.

Although the Spirit of Water had spent centuries among men and changed from 'Saint Anubis' to 'Gandalfr' and had accepted contracts with various people and nobles, it didn't mean it wasn't, at its foremost, yet one more spirit.

A spirit who would die if the crusade reached its intended end.

Now the rest was up to the folly of youth. Once more, the ring of Andvari had been recovered, and right in that moment the Left Hand of God was perhaps at its weakest.

While at first the Founder's decision of making weapons appear throughout the Sahara of the Other world had been a plan for his benefit, it was now just one more advantage of the Elves against the Markey's race. Had it been a lesser civilization, such weapons would have been studied and used against the Markey from the very instant they'd become understandable -and they had, but the Elves simply did not wish for bloodshed, nor for the death of millions for the guilt of so few. At least, the majority of the Elves was against claiming the blood of the Markey with their own hands. They had no qualms letting the Will of the World do it for them.

So Nepthys the Second sipped green tea quietly as he waited for the boy from the other world to come back fully armed and ready for the fight of his life.

Perhaps he wouldn't fail this time around, and if he did, well, then rather than a miracle prayed to the Will of the Planet, he'd do things the old way.

He was an old man.

This didn't mean his hands had never held a bow.

 

[shadenight123]

Chapter Ninety-Nine

The Templars held their camp around the city of Romalia. The knights could sleep safely within the holy city's walls, but the crusaders themselves were housed inside large tents, the barracks mostly filled to the brim already.

They were men of all nations, and all countries. They were the faithful, and they came to fight in the name of the Gods, of the Founder, and to reclaim the Holy Land from the devils that were the Elves. Their purpose was just, their will unshakable and unbroken.

And now they were learning how to fly. Not really, but the screams mixed with the sound of steel impacting against steel was always followed by dozens of men flying up in the air, one after the other.

There were thousands of crusaders, all eager, all ready to lay down their lives down in defense of the Holy City of Romalia, and yet as if they were nothing but paper, they began to crumble one after the other.

"Im-Impossible!" William exclaimed, a knight of the Templars, as he watched the ground ripple and quake under the swings of a mighty sword easily twice his size. "D-Demon!" he yelled next, fumbling for his wand as the creature was upon him in a second, left hand ablaze as the knight was backhanded off his horse, through a tent, and then came to a halt half covered in dirt and soot.

He'd live. His jaw would need time to be healed.

A strong and robust mercenary from Germania tried to swing his claymore down, only for it to be blocked by the Demon's greatsword, which swung to the side carrying the enemy's blade with it, and then the pommel of the greatsword stuck through the chestplate, shattering it and making the mercenary keel over.

A gauntlet punch later, and the brute flew into a formation of six knights.

The greatsword was swung once more, down on the ground like a battering ram. As musket fire ricocheted off it, the man wielding the blade jumped over it and threw himself forth still holding on to its handle. The swing of it generated enough air pressure to thoroughly send the musket line scattering, their bodies hitting the ground abruptly and falling unconscious.

"Don't overdue it, partner!" the Greatsword spoke with Derflinger's voice. "It's your life you're burning away!"

"And it's theirs I'm saving!" Saito retorted, rushing forward as his chest was ablaze just like his hand. The ground broke off in chips wherever he walked, the greatsword as light as a feather, but as a deadly instrument it was flawless. Only, he wasn't using it to kill people, just knock them out. He'd have gone with a warhammer, but hammers were made to turn into pulp the inner organs, while the blade wasn't. Out of the two, the flat of a blade or the flat side of a hammer, it was obvious which was less lethal.

The amount of crusaders was thinning too. Many had begun to run away rather than stand their ground. Some had started to plead. He still didn't stop. He broke bones. They'd heal, hopefully. They had water magic for that, didn't they? So they'd be all right.

Magic fire roared towards him, lines of fire and wind blades, but he spun his greatsword in front of him, and as the blade ignited with the magical power of the enemy's attacks, it was sent back in a devastating pillar of light, turning the ground to magma from the sheer scorching heat, and ending in ripples an inch away from the terrorized knights that held the line by the Holy City's walls who were now missing a good chunk of them.

The walls crumpled down, carrying with them the screams of the knights who fell amidst the rubble.

Hopefully not dead.

"His Holiness-The Pope!" the defenders murmured among themselves as the Pope showed his presence from the main road, his golden staff visible. His eyes were narrow, his expression one that could easily be considered 'pissed off'.

"You!" he snarled, his voice carrying on through the landscape as the earth began to cool down. "Why are you doing this? What did they tell you, that you so quickly headed over to their side? Don't you understand-you're condemning us all!"

"No I'm not!" Saito snapped back. "Surrender! I've found a solution-one that doesn't need bloodshed!"

The Pope clenched his staff with his right hand and bit down harshly on his lips. "A solution without bloodshed? So the Elves control your mind now, do they not? Well-then you'll have to go. Attack him all at once, faithful of the Gods! He is a Demon, and against the righteous, he shall never win! The Holy City will not-"

Saito was there, in front of him. He had jumped, and in jumping he had reached him. "Just shut up for once," Saito muttered, swinging the sword with enough strength that created a wall of air with merely the motion. The Pope's eyes were wide as Saito landed right in front of him. His eyes then rolled to the back of the head, the pressure too much to bear. He stumbled backwards, but Saito was quick to grab hold of him.

For the Gandalfr who truly wished for it, an army was nothing.

He could feel it, their eyes on his skin.

"Drop your weapons!" he snapped. "Drop them, now!" he slammed the greatsword on the ground, cracks spreading from the point of impact. Some of the men wielding their wands, or swords, were twice his age. There were a few in armor, a couple with beards that were short, but white. Why would they listen to him? He was just eighteen. He had ravaged through their camp, broke through the walls, knocked out their Pope, but why should they listen to him?

He clenched the handle of the greatsword tighter still, to the point where he heard the soft grumbling of Derflinger. "Don't ever hold a girl like this or she's going to cry," the blade said offhandedly.

They didn't, but neither did they stride forward. Perhaps they thought that with a hostage, he would be slowed down?

No, no he wouldn't.

Perhaps they thought that the Pope wouldn't want them to surrender?

Yes, perhaps they thought that.

Then maybe-maybe he just had to keep it up.

Louise Françoise Le Blanc de la Valliere hadn't slept in three days. Well, no, she had tried to sleep, but she always woke up, blasted something, and then tiredly fell unconscious for a few minutes before waking up again and repeating the motions.

She was going to murder a royal heir of the Founder, but she didn't really care about the implications of it.

The girl had the galls, no matter how many times Saito had forgiven her, to betray them one more time. No, honestly, she was beyond forgiveness. Even if Saito were to give her the most puppy-eyed look of all, she wouldn't stop until that treacherous blue-haired harlot was dead. She'd skewer her with a hundred of tiny holes, blast her limbs off one at the time-maybe she'd make her crawl and beg forgiveness, and then say 'no' and end her right where she stood.

Yes, perhaps she'd do that.

If only the damn ship went faster.

"Louis," the Princess-no, the Queen- Henrietta, once 'Anne' said gently from her side. Apparently, she wasn't answering to 'Louise', or 'Luise' either. "Are you going to blow up the birds again?"

Louise ground her teeth. "If they're in the way, your majesty," Louise answered primly. "And I like to think I'm annoying a hateful person by doing this," she added.

"I did not take you for someone who enjoyed animal cruelty, Louise," Henrietta said, shaking her head with her lips thin in displeasure, a cross look on her face.

"It's not being cruel. I am merely claiming the element of surprise," Louise replied quite calmly. She clutched her chest suddenly, nearly lurching over the guardrail of the flying ship as her vision swam slightly, one of her eyes no longer properly looking at the vast expanse ahead, but at blood.

There was so much blood.

A large Hydra, its many heads snapping and bearing down upon her, no-upon the vision of whoever she was looking through- and yet one head came less, cut neatly off. A second soon followed. She felt her legs give away as she fell down on her knees, holding with her hands the wooden rail for safety while closing her other eye.

She was seeing through Saito's eyes.

"Unhand the Pope!" that was Julio's voice, filled with scorn and anger.

"Stop! You're burning the city down!" Saito's voice came through. "Just listen to me!"

"There is no listening to the likes of you!" Julio's anger was palpable, even through the blurry vision that was now coming less. Why was the city on fire? Oh-dragons, there were many large dragons flying around overhead, casting down flames. "Because of you-look at what you've done!" Julio was apparently missing an arm, but he clutched the stump with his other hand, standing atop his dragon. "I lost control of so many-they won't listen!"

"And how is that my fault!?" Saito snapped back, angrily for once. "You just-you just reap what you sow! That's-"

The vision came less, and Louise took a deep, meaningful breath as she centered herself, reopening both of her eyes.

"Louise-Louise are you all right?" the Queen's voice came through worried, even though she had been so cross mere seconds before.

"Yes," Louise whispered hoarsely. "It's just-"

"Your highness!" a voice called from atop the ship's crow nest. "Romalia! The Holy City-The Holy City is burning!"

Louise shakily stood back up on her feet as she looked over the horizon, to where thick plumes of smoke were rising up in the sky, darkening it.

"We must hurry to-" she drowned out the Queen's voice, because she didn't want to hear it, not when she had to concentrate. With her swordwand out, she began to chant as the city grew closer and closer.

What they had done was unforgivable.

Thus, their punishment had to be exemplary.

That was what the Rule of Steel was all about, wasn't it?

Nobody steals a Valliere's man and lives in peace ever after. That was how the feud with the Zerbst had begun, and still held strong even after centuries, so for daring to steal her man?

She was going to blow it all up.

And leave a fuming crater in its place.